Identification wristbands are commonly used in a hospital or other setting to promote the easy identification of patients or other wearers. In the instance of a hospital use, a patient is generally provided with an identification wristband that is secured about the wrist of the patient upon admission to the hospital. In addition, a number of labels for use in identifying fluid samples, medications, charts, folders, papers and other common hospital objects specific to an admitted patient are often printed when a patient is admitted.
Often, the labels and wristbands are printed separately. The wristband is placed on the patient, while the labels are put into a patient chart, or otherwise saved for later use. However, in an effort to streamline patient admission procedures, and in light of the widespread use and low cost of computer driven printers such as laser printers, it has become desirable to print the labels and wristbands in a single step.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,653,472 entitled, “Form Having Detachable Wristband and Labels” discloses a form having detachable labels and a wristband. The form includes a face ply adhered to a liner ply by a pressure sensitive adhesive. The face ply includes a first portion and a second portion where the first portion is die cut to form a wristband and the second portion is die cut to form a series of detachable labels. A problem associated with this design is that the die cut wristband tends to become separated from the form too easily. This is an issue in that it is desirable that the form be printable in a single pass through a laser, or other type of printer. However, the edges of the die cut wristband may become snagged on the mechanism of the printer and become lodged in the printer, causing a printer malfunction.
Other problems associated with prior art printable forms which include a wristband and labels is that the wristbands are not durable enough to withstand adverse conditions, which may include exposure to moisture, abrasion, and tearing forces. In such conditions, printed material may be smeared or scraped off. In addition, a direct line of sight is required to read any information which may be printed onto the wristband.
The present invention is designed to solve these and other problems.